


Beast Rangers

by Vepaioa



Category: Power Rangers
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-09
Updated: 2019-01-23
Packaged: 2019-10-07 02:50:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 9,266
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17357537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vepaioa/pseuds/Vepaioa
Summary: Commission on FR.





	1. Chapter 1

Casey stumbled as the ground shook, an obvious sign of the stone’s instability. Bits of rock and dirt fell into the void below and he realized what the rumbling signified. Quickly, he jumped as far as his legs could push him to a moment before the little stone outcropping he had been standing on gave way. Casey’s head whipped back, looking at the spot where he had just been slowly shuffling across the thin ledge on the side of the temple. He sighed, gathering his resolve before continuing on. 

There was no other way into the temple. The large entrance which had once held marble gates larger than the tallest trees had been blocked by a rockslide. Rather than fruitlessly attempt to dig through the pile of rock, Casey decided he had to find another way in. He had spotted a window filtering rainbows with it’s stained windows and a treacherous path that seemed to lead directly to it. He’d taken the risk, though. Plus, in such a remote forest in South America, no one could arrest him for trespassing. 

A few more minutes of carefully inching, Casey found himself facing the multicolored window. At first, he attempted to push lightly against the window, afraid it would suddenly burst open and he’d fall to his death. When it didn’t even budge, though, he pressed his palms harder against the glass. No luck. Casey frowned, wondering if it’d be worth it to risk ramming his shoulder against the glass and end up falling down dozens of feet. 

As he crouched by the rainbow-colored glass, he realized that the ledge was starting to become unstable beneath his feet. Casey cursed underneath his breath and, without a thought, he wrapped his hand before slamming his fist through the glass, the sound of shattering filling the air. Casey leaned forward, peering over the rim of the windowsill. He was… Too high up. Luckily for him, there were pieces of wood outcropping from the wall that seemed to be similar to ladder rungs leading to the ground. For those that cleaned the windows when the temple was still active, he guessed.

As his feet hit the ground, a large cloud of dust rose into the air from the impact. Casey coughed, hacking from the dust particles entering his lungs and eyes watering. He held an arm over his mouth and nose, and narrowed his eyes as he walked about the inside of the temple. The entirety of the South American temple was coated in dust and rocks, a few wild plants growing here and there. Every one of his steps stirred up a small dust cloud, something that was annoying but not interfering with his exploration. As far as he could see, though, there was nothing Casey thought was important.

That is, until he suddenly heard a whisper that seemed to be right in his ear. He gasped, his head snapping in the direction of the voice, but there was no one there. There [i]was[/i] a doorway though; the one room Casey had yet to explore in the temple. He took a deep breath, feeling like something was pulling him towards the doorway. He was bound to go there eventually anyway, right? No point delaying the inevitable. 

Carefully, he paced through the ancient temple, passing underneath the doorway and allowing himself to be tugged towards… Something. Casey felt a slight sense of dread, but there was also an underlying sense of excitement. The thrill of the unknown, just like the old days. Sometimes, he wondered if the others were still out there, doing something similar. Sometimes, he wondered if the others wonder about him and his whereabouts.

No, probably not. Casey shook his head. It wasn’t an appropriate time to be wondering if his old friends cared about him anymore. He’d probably end up depressed and sitting on the ground crying, both from his emotions and from the dust in his eyes. He hissed when his shin hit something hard; a bit of a pillar that had collapsed long ago. He bent slightly to rub at the inevitable bruise he’d see later when, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a soft glow in a cascade of colors. Green, pink, black, purple, blue… Red. Casey slowly stood back up and, as if possessed, glided towards the lights.

He found himself standing in front of a glass case, probably the most modern thing in the temple. Like everything else, it was covered in a thick layer of dust. He swept his hand over the surface, wiping away much of it. The glow was even stronger when the dust was cleared away. Inside of the glass case sat six glowing gemstones, all perfectly cut and smooth. Each had its own glow that matched it’s color, though none of them outshone the others. Unlike everything else, the gemstones were clean and seemed to be well-managed, as there wasn’t even a scratch on any of the shiny surfaces. 

Casey couldn’t look away. It was as if the colors of the gems had him in a trance. He pressed his hand against the glass case, but rather than meeting the cold glass, his hand passed right through it as if it didn’t exist. His fist closed around the closest one, the red one. He stared at the red stone lying in his palm, glowing more softly once it had touched his skin. 

He closed his eyes, thoughts not his own suddenly entering his head. Faces he didn’t know flashed behind his eyelids. Casey knew he couldn’t just leave the gemstones there… But he couldn’t have all of them to himself. He opened his eyes once more and stared at the red jewel in his hand once more. Now, the gemstone was glowing harshly, as if trying to communicate something. Almost lethargically, Casey once more reached into the case, pulling out the other five gemstones one by one.

**Take the Animus Force to them.**

With that, a splitting headache and the sound of nonexistent screaming in his ears came before he promptly passed out. A few days later, he’d find himself in a forest at the edge of a town he’d never heard of with no memory of how he got there.


	2. Chapter 2

Long before humanity existed, what humans would call “extraterrestrial life” was building empires and conquering entire galaxies. Of course, there were some notably powerful forces in the universe, but one had to be the strongest of all. And the strongest empire had to have the strongest leader. For some time, the universe was nothing but an endless war between too many opposing forces to count. Each one wanted more to control. More planets, more of the population, more power. Yet, no empire was truly stronger than the other, so the war never stopped...

For a while. Thousands of years before the first humans came to be, there was an emperor. He was the lord of the Taotic empire, one of the most feared in the universe. The empire had suddenly risen from out of the blue, powerful and terrifying. His subjects called him Lord Xion. His enemies called him Angleuah, a word that meant “Despicable”, and despicable, he was. He was merciless to his enemies. Rather than meld conquered armies with his, he would kill off every single living being, whether or not they could fight didn’t matter. To try and fight Angleuah’s forces was suicide. His army was perhaps the largest in the known universe, trained killing machines that seemed to have no weakness. The Taotic empire was feared by enemies and revered by allies. It seemed as if it would never fall.

Of course, nothing lasts forever. Lord Xion had planned on conquering the Milky Way. Not any of the planets’ inhabitants, of course, just to take control of the planets themselves. He came upon Earth, expecting little to no resistance due to the primitive technology that it had shown. To his surprise, though, a small group of resistance fighters fought back against his army. They called themselves the Sentai, though they didn’t seem any different from the rest of Earth’s inhabitants. 

Whatever the case, Xion wasn’t fazed. He’d faced many planets that attempted to fight back against him, and time and time again they failed. So, how would this primitive backwater planet not suffer the same fate as all the other planets before it? Of course, as Xion sent his armies to Earth, he noticed something interesting… The Sentai seemed to have little jewels that gave off immense readings of energy.

He’d have to investigate.

So, Lord Xion, ruler of the Taotic empire, personally went down to Earth among his armies of foot soldiers. The humans, who were just entering the Middle Ages, saw the army of rat-like soldiers led by a reptilian headed ruler and cried out “Dragon!” Xion certainly looked like a dragon, too. With his body coated in strong armor that was nothing like Earth’s chainmail and leather, his height of about eight feet and the head of something resembling the behemoth creatures of the Mesozoic Era, he fit in perfectly with the descriptions of dragons of legend. Unlike the dragons of lore, though, he couldn’t be taken down by a knight in shining armor. 

So, in the epic battle between humanity and the Taotic empire, the only ones who could defend the Earth were the Sentai. The jewels that the Sentai had, named the Chikara, were strong. Strong enough that the Sentai could battle the foot soldiers without being overpowered. Still, the humans were losing. It was six against hundreds from an advanced society with no sense of fear or pain holding them back. Humans are flawed, though their terror is what has kept them alive for so long. The foot soldiers, though… They were like robots. Perfect in every way.

The Sentai found themselves cornered, foot soldiers surrounding them from every angle. They knew that, once they were defeated, Lord Xion would send his vast army of foot soldiers to conquer every corner of the Earth, leaving nothing behind. No, they knew they would have to stop them, no matter what they sacrificed. With that, they combined the Chikara together, creating the final blow that would determine the fate of the Earth.

That day, the Sentai died and each of the six Chikara were destroyed, leaving only scattered pieces that were picked up by the wind and carried around the world. The power of the blow destroyed Lord Xion’s army, but Xion himself was merely knocked into a comatose state, surviving thanks to his pure resilience. His body was lost in deep space, in a sector of the universe that was explored, treacherous and filled with so many spatial anomalies and black holes that even the bravest feared to venture near it. Although the Taotic empire was not destroyed completely, it was left in shambles without its strong ruler. The Earth no longer had protectors and its greatest weapon, but the universe had lost its greatest terrorizer.

In the rest of the universe, every living being heard of the defeat of the Taotic empire’s ruler. Rather than start a huge war for control of the formerly great empire’s property, instead the news prospered peace. The warring powers realized that it was better to live in harmony than in a constant struggle, whether it be for survival or for power. 

It would be nearly two thousand years later when the former tyrant would wake up from the coma placed upon him by the Chikara. Xion would find himself lost in space with no means of communication with his empire. Of course, unbeknownst to him, the Taotic empire had fallen without its leader, a ghost of the figure it had once been. There were still some from the old time, though. Some that had fallen under a spell just like him, albeit the coma would last longer due to their weaker bodies. Some that were still loyal to Lord Xion… Enough for him to recreate his lost legacy.

Lord Xion would head back to Earth and do what he didn’t do all those millennia ago. He had no idea that the Chikara, now called the Animus Force, was recreated but sealed away by the descendant of one of the original Sentai long ago, but he’d find out. 

The war on Earth was only beginning.


	3. Chapter 3

Casey groaned and held his head in his hands, a splitting headache and flashing images plaguing his mind. He collapsed against a tree next to him, faintly recognizing the sounds of laughter and chatter a bit far off. He was near a town, a small one but with a lively population. The jewels glowed, some stronger or softer than the others. The blue one glowed the brightest and Casey felt as if his body was being tugged by an invisible force. Were the jewels trying to… Lead him? The thought might have seemed outrageous to the average person, but Casey and his past were definitely not average. Six gemstones mentally connecting to him and telling him where to go was probably the least strange thing that had ever happened to him. 

So, he followed the insistent tug in his mind. The blue gemstone--Animus Force, his mind seemed to correct itself,-- was starting to glow stronger and stronger with every step he took. In fact, its surface was beginning to heat up a bit. Casey didn’t let himself be perturbed by this, though, and continued on the path the Animus Force was leading him on. Some of the small gemstones were freezing cold while others were starting to heat up to the point he feared burning his palm.

As he trudged on, he started to get closer and closer to the town. Eventually, he found himself wandering along the streets, strangely empty despite the time of day it was. Casey’s eyes drifted over to the store window next to him, shocked by the haggard man staring back at him. 

“Damn…” He mumbled as he stopped and stared at his reflection, running a hand through his dirty hair, “I look like total--”

He yelped as the blue Animus Force suddenly burned white hot in his hand. He nearly dropped it before it suddenly returned to normal, but it left a noticeable burn mark on his palm. Casey hissed as he attempted to soothe the wound but to no avail. The burning heat of the gemstone still lingered in his grip. Rather than focus on that, though, he decided to once again follow the path he was following, the blue Animus force glowing once more.

Eventually, after much time spent wandering about and earning a few more burns from the Animus Force when he lingered too long in one spot, he found himself in front of a house. Casey furrowed his brow at the empty driveway and the switched off lights. No one was home, so why was he here? The blue Animus Force--which he was starting to call the Blue Wolf Zord since the more he looked at it, the more it resembled a wolf and somehow the word Zord felt right-- was still hot in his hand and glowing as brightly as a flashlight being shone into his eyes. The other Animus Force he’d forgotten about since they weren’t doing much.

Casey still decided to give a good look before giving up. He’d walked all the way here, after all. He looked around, making sure no one was watching before he pushed himself over the fence, neatly landing on the other side. The Blue Wolf Zord was still hot in his hand and glowing strongly, and he swore that it was starting to hum. That must’ve just been his imagination, though.

As he snuck through the front yard of the house, not too worried about possible passer-bys seeing him as the gate surrounded by incredibly large bushes blocked him from view, he grew more and more confused. There was nothing here, why would the Blue Wolf Zord lead him here? Casey slowly made his way to the back of the house. He had to squeeze through a small gap between the side of the house and the fence, going slowly as to not drop any of the Zords and be unable to pick them up. 

He stilled when he heard the low murmur of voices. It seemed to be coming from the direction he was going in, so there was probably someone in the backyard. Casey slowly inched closer, taking lighter and more careful steps after he had heard that someone was actually in the backyard. He found himself peering at two men--he swore he only heard one voice-- around the corner. Thankfully, they hadn’t seemed to have spotted movement, most likely because Casey was standing in the shadow of the house.

“...Don’t have to--”, the one facing Casey started,

“I want to, Joseph.” 

The one named Joseph frowned at that. He put a hand on the other’s shoulder, brows furrowed in what appeared to be concern.

“Look, I just don’t think she really likes you. You shouldn’t be with her.”

The other man laughed a bit harshly at Joseph’s statement. Joseph frowned and his hand fell back to his side.

“Just listen to us! Fighting over girls like we’re twelve!” Casey assumed the man was grinning, though he couldn’t see when his back was turned to him. 

“You always said it would be Nick and Joseph, no girls intervening in our ‘awesome epic broship’.” Joseph stared at Nick with an expression that almost made Casey pity him.

“We were ten, Joseph…” Nick sighed, the weariness obvious in his voice. He held his head in his hand, pinching his forehead. He missed the hurt expression on Joseph’s face. Casey was starting to doubt the Blue Wolf Zord’s purpose for bringing him to the house.

“I--” Joseph started when he was cut off by a yell. The two men stared in alarm at Casey, who was clutching his burned hand and wincing. There was even smoke coming from the wound, which was definitely not a good sign. All of the Animus Force Zords laid on the ground, the blue one glowing strongly and hot enough that the grass around it was on fire. 

Casey opened his eyes that were screwed shut to see Joseph and Nick staring at him and the Zords that had fallen from his hands. His eyes widened upon realizing that he was caught spying on the two and, without even thinking, he whispered,

“Oh, fuck.”


	4. Chapter 4

“Oh, fuck.”

Immediately, chaos ensued. The moment that Joseph and Nick spotted him, Casey knew that it was best for him to run. His eyes flickered down at the Zords laying on the ground--the blue one in particular. There were small flames surrounding it, licking against the white-hot surface of the “gemstone”, although the Zord itself seemed completely undamaged. The other Zords laid nearby, each glowing with their own strength, some stronger than others. The pink one, he noticed, was glowing just as brightly as the blue one, and he could assume it’s surface was just as scalding as well. Strangely, though, no flames danced in the grass near the pink Animus Force Zord.

Joseph and Nick started yelling, clearly having snapped out of their surprise. Casey panicked and attempted to squeeze through the gap between house and fence to freedom. All of a sudden, though, the burn on his palm flashed in pain, almost as if he had been stabbed by a knife that was drenched in alcohol. Casey was starting to get light-headed from all this pain he was feeling in such a short amount of time, though he managed to force his eyes down to the Blue Wolf Zord.

The fires had stopped, though it was still glowing harshly and he could feel the heat emanating from its surface from being so close to it. Casey was starting to suspect that perhaps it’s constant trend of inflicting pain upon him was some sort of hidden sign. For what, though, he had no idea. He grimaced in pain and gripped his right hand with his left, the pain so intense that he felt the need to apply pressure, as if it were a scratch that could clot and reduce the entrance of bacteria into the body, causing said pain. It was clear, though, that this wasn’t even a normal burn.

The palm of Casey’s hand was starting to turn blue. Not the dark, purplish, natural blue of a bruise, or even the tint of navy that came from lack of oxygen in the blood cells. No, it was a bright, glowing azure that reminded Casey of neon signs sitting in front of bars glowing harshly while people walked by without so much a glance in the dead of night. It was a harsh, shining sky blue that reminded Casey of the sight of raw energy crafted into a weapon even though it wasn’t meant for that purpose, though the intent to kill by the user outweighed the purity of the energy. It was… Beautiful.

Beautiful and painful. It felt as if the heat of ten suns were burning underneath the flesh of his hand, and for some strange reason, he felt as if the only remedy was… Tossing the Blue Wolf Zord at Joseph? Casey decided to blame the pain clouding his judgment, but he bent down as quickly as he could in the cramped space, grabbed the Zord--which he noticed considerably cooled the burning pain in his hand-- and tossed it at Joseph. 

Except, Casey’s burn caused him to give a bad toss. Instead, it flew towards Nick rather than the other man. Nick’s eyes widened and he immediately held up his arm. Before it hit the man square in the head and inevitably burned him, a hand shot out and grabbed it out of the air.   
\---

Joseph’s eyes widened. Why--how did he just do that? The gemstone that the stalker had thrown at Nick had stopped glowing, and he could see out of the corner of his eye that he was staring at him in shock. For good reason, too, because Joseph was shocked as well. Mostly, from the fact that his private conversation had been intruded upon. He was just about to drop the stone that he had caught when he swore he heard a voice.

‘Joseph, do not.’

He gasped, his fingers clenching the gemstone tighter without his permission. Joseph looked up at Nick and the stalker, but it was clear neither of them had spoken. He thought that perhaps it was a figment of his imagination or he had simply heard the wind howling, though his theories were shattered when the voice spoke once more.

‘You are not going insane. I am Selaphiel, former... Keeper of the Zord of the Blue Wolf. And you, Joseph, have been chosen as it’s keeper.’

With that, Joseph promptly passed out. Right before he lost consciousness, though, he heard a loud thud--like the sound of a body dropping to the ground.

\---

Nick panicked. 

He hadn’t moved, his feet glued to the ground due to his panic. The moment he saw Joseph’s body falling, though, Nick’s instincts kicked in and he immediately caught his best friend before he collapsed on the ground. Panic still gripped his heart, though his concern for his… For him overrode that fear easily. Carefully, Nick laid Joseph down on the ground, eyes lingering on the other man’s peaceful expression for a moment before remembering their predicament.

Nick’s eyes found their way to the man that had been watching the two conversed. He had to guess that he was probably in his mid-to-late thirties, so either the man was a creep or… Well, he wasn’t sure what the alternative could be. The man was passed out just like Joseph, except he hadn’t had anyone to catch him. A few droplets of blood laid on the grass near his head, most likely from him hitting the ground. Nick did notice the soft… Pink glow coming from the man’s palm, though his palm was facing the ground so that Nick couldn’t see the source of the light. 

Glancing quickly at Joseph, Nick knew what he had to do. He was a bit nervous considering he knew nothing about this guy--he could be a serial killer, for all he knew--but nothing was making sense and Joseph wasn’t awake to tell him not to do something. Taking a deep breath, he walked carefully over to the stranger, dragging him into his house. He wanted answers, and he probably had a rope or cord somewhere…


	5. Chapter 5

Joseph groaned as he awoke. The first thing that he immediately noticed was the intense pain of a splitting headache. The next thing he noticed was what he felt under him was not the soft sheets of his bed; rather, it was the smooth feel of… Leather? 

His eyes shot open, and he quickly noticed Nick’s back turned on him. Sitting up slowly to avoid any more unnecessary pain, he realized that he had been sleeping on his side. He racked his memory for when he had suddenly decided to take a nap on Nick’s couch in his house, though nothing came up. All Joseph could remember was that he had been arguing with Nick about something before there was a flurry of activity that he couldn’t keep his mind on in his post-awakening sluggish state.

With some exhaustion clear in his voice, he said, “Nick… What’s going on…?” As Joseph was reorienting himself, Nick had turned to watch him, with a look of worry that had graced his face. He knew better than to constantly fuss over him and just be overall clingy when he’s not feeling well. Although Joseph is a naturally calm person, seeing Nick in distress causes him to stress. So, rather, Nick would just silently watch and let Joseph recover from something on his own. 

Slowly, the previously unconscious man stood up and shuffled over next to Nick to stare him straight in the eye. The other man was silent for a moment as he stared before replying, “You passed out. This guy,” he gestured at the strange man that had been watching them, “Passed out as well. I… Tied him up so I could interrogate him.” Nick quickly fumbled over his words and corrected himself. “We. We could interrogate him.” Joseph sighed, and he opened his mouth to reply but was interrupted by groans and hisses of pain coming from his right. 

“Speak of the devil,” Nick muttered before turning to watch the awakening stranger.  
\----  
The first thing that Casey noticed as he awoke was that the scorching pain of the Zords that had burned his hand still lingered, despite what he had assumed to be an hour-long nap. The second thing he noticed was that he wasn’t a person to take naps.

Perhaps it was the fact that he was used to finding himself waking up in strange places --his past life as a Power Ranger had certainly called for unusual moments-- or the fact that he was feeling intensely exhausted, but either way, he didn’t open his eyes for a moment. Casey just felt a strange sense of calm wash over him.

Then the pain kicked in.

Immediately, his entire body started to hurt. He could feel a splitting headache caused by his head impacting with the ground. He could feel the pain in his chest, almost as if something was crushing him and preventing him from breathing. The burns intensified tenfold in pain. It was as if some the effects of adrenaline had suddenly been shut off in the blink of an eye and Casey’s entire body had crashed and felt the effects of what he had endured. And did it hurt like a bitch.

He felt like he was being tortured. Hell, he was being tortured; by his own nervous system. Letting out a series of groans and hisses due to the pain, Casey barely heard the sound of someone speaking.

“Speak of the devil.”

Eyes opening blearily, Casey focused on the figure in front of him. His vision was blurry, and all he could see were the muddled silhouettes of two people. He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, before opening them once more and seeing the silhouettes more distinguished. Although his sight was still not at it’s best, he could still recognize the faces of the two men the Zords had led him to.

‘Shit,’ he thought before the one closest to him started speaking. 

“Who the hell are you?” He growled. Casey easily recognized the tough guy front --though he questioned if it really was a front-- though decided not to comment on it. He definitely wouldn’t get scared by it, though. He’d seen worse before. Scarier monsters. “Why were you watching us?” The older man didn’t respond for a moment, internally debating whether he should come up with a lie or spill the truth. Everyone could believe that some middle-aged man was spying on two teenagers because of some strange gemstones that seemed intent on scarring him with burns until it got it’s way, right?

“...I’m here to help.” Casey could practically feel the repressed groan from the one standing in the back. “Nick, how do we know this guy is going to tell the truth at all?” The one closest to him, Nick, stared at Casey for a moment, pondering his friend’s question. “We’ll find out.” Nick turned around, grabbing something that Casey couldn’t see from his position and held out a clenched fist now adorned with a glove. “This. What is this.” It was less of a question and more of a command.

Unfurling his fingers, Casey almost audibly winced. Muscle memory. Every time he saw those damned Zords, he could practically feel the sting of the burns. He swore that the existing burns on his hands --which were currently tied up behind him to the back of a chair-- intensified in pain. Staring at the blue Zord, he carefully replied, “It’s a Zord. An object of such power even I can’t believe. His specifically,” he nodded at Joseph, “and you probably shouldn’t hold it. Give it to him.”

Before Nick could reply, the other man, quick as a flash, had grabbed the Zord from his grip. Casey watched carefully as Nick gasped, only just realizing the blue stone had been stolen away. He then turned his attention to the Zord in the other man’s hand, rapidly increasing in the intensity of the glow. It seemed to reach a point that it could be mistaken for a hand-sized sun.

Then it went out. Casey choked on his own breath in shock, while both of the men were stock-still, eyes wide.


	6. Chapter 6

Joseph was silent as he stared down at the normal-looking blue gemstone. When the man that was currently tied up was holding it… Well, it definitely seemed not so… Ordinary? It looked like the normal sapphire, albeit a bit larger than the ones you’d find in the store. It would definitely sell for quite a lot, and the little part of his mind --the instinctual, selfish, human part of his mind-- told him to run with it and get a boatload of cash. Quickly, Joseph quelled that little voice. He was more interested in why the stranger seemed intent on him taking it… Surely he’d want to keep it for himself? It was without a doubt valuable, so why would this thirty-something-year-old man give it to a bunch of teenagers that he didn’t know? Joseph wasn’t one to steal, and he was sure Nick wouldn’t usually, but this man didn’t know that. 

Glancing at said man, he noticed that he looked as shocked as Joseph felt. Apparently, he didn’t know what had happened would happen either… It intrigued Joseph. Looking down at the gemstone once more, he gasped, more in pain than in shock.

Upon setting eyes on the sapphire, he was immediately met with a wave of nausea, dizziness, and a headache so painful he felt as if he would faint. Stumbling backward a bit, the back of his knees hit the sofa and he fell ungracefully down into a sitting position onto the leather. Joseph’s fingers had automatically clenched around the sapphire -- hard. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t get his fingers to move an inch off of the stone. With desperation, he used his other hand to pry off his fingers or take away the sapphire from the palm of his hand, but no luck.

‘So,’ a voice whispered in his mind, strangely familiar, ‘Once more you hold the Zord of the Wolf. As I introduced myself before, I am Selaphiel. And you, Joseph Gray, are the keeper of the Zord of the Blue Wolf. Listen to the man before you. You must reunite the other Zords with their rightful keepers…’ The voice paused for a moment. 

‘It appears that one other keeper is in this very location. Reunite the Zord and listen to this man… Listen to Casey Rhodes, your mentor.’ With that, the voice faded away and so did the pain that was ailing Joseph. Thinking he was just going crazy --it had definitely been a strange day, even before ‘Casey’ arrived-- he ignored what the voice told him. His fingers loosened around the gemstone and it immediately fell from his hand.

“No!” The man shouted, and both Nick and Joseph snapped to attention. The gemstone fell onto the hardwood floor with a soft thud, and as far as he could tell, there were no cracks in the surface or even any visible injuries. Nick narrowed his eyes at him. “These gems means a lot to you…?” The man was quiet for a moment, refusing to answer the younger man before he grew impatient. “Answer me!” After a moment of silence after the shout, he replied, “...No.” 

Joseph scoffed, causing Nick to glance at him from the corner of his eye before looking once more at the subdued man. “That’s a lie. Unless it isn’t? If you don’t care so much about it, would it bother you if I did this?” Nick leaned down, grabbed the gemstone and reared his arm back, ready to throw it against the wall and undeniably shatter it.

“Wait, stop.” The man said just before Nick could act on his threat. Joseph stared at him as Nick held it in a more safe manner. “If you don’t want me to break this thing, give us answers.” He gritted his teeth before replying. “Fine.” Nick and Joseph shared a quick look. Slowly, Joseph stood up from the couch to stand next to his best friend and stare down at the man. The interrogation has begun. 

“Who are you?” The man hesitated for a moment before saying, “My name is Casey.” 

Joseph choked on his own breath upon hearing that, eyes wide upon realizing what the man had said. Was the voice real? Surely he couldn’t have made up a voice in his head to tell himself that and somehow get the name right. Was the voice actually right about the… What was it, Zord? 

The thought caused Joseph to fall backward onto the couch once more, frozen in shock. Nick turned around to stare at him, concern clear on his face. “C-Casey… Casey Rhodes?” The man’s eyes widened at that while Nick shot a confused look at Joseph.

“...What else do you know?” It was practically confirmation in of itself, or at least that’s what Joseph deducted from Casey Rhodes. For a moment, he was silent as he stared at the man before replying with, “Not much. I just know that this,” he quickly snatched the blue stone from Nick’s hand, “is a Zord. Whatever that means. And I know that apparently, I am the… Keeper of the Zord of the Blue Wolf.” 

Casey bit his lip nervously, mulling over Joseph’s words before saying, “I’m sure you know what Keepers are..?” The addressed shook his head no, which caused Casey to let out a heavy sigh. “They are the chosen ones of the Zords. And I’m sure you know that you have to find all the chosen ones and reunite them with their respective Zords, huh?” This, Joseph hesitantly nodded to. Nick, meanwhile, stared at him like he had lost his mind. Maybe he had.

“And I’m sure,” Casey muttered, “that you know there is another Keeper here. Another Power Ranger.” This time, Joseph was silent, absolutely puzzled. Did he mean himself…? Was there someone else here…? 

Then it hit him.

Quickly, he snatched the other Zords that were neatly on the table. Unsure which would work, he simply grabbed and shoved them into Nick’s hand without warning. He didn’t even know how he knew, but some gut feeling told him he was right. And when Nick opened his mouth to say something but promptly passed out, Joseph took it as a sign that his gut feeling had been right.

Casey shook his head as he watched the Blue Ranger catch his falling friend and carry him to the couch. This was certainly an… _Unusual_ day.


	7. Chapter 7

“Are you okay?”

Nick stared at Joseph for a moment, seemingly reading his expression for a moment. “Obviously I’m fine. I just found out that I’m a goddamn destined warrior that’s supposed to wield some ancient power that I know nothing about. Yeah, everything’s fine,” he snarked. Joseph recoiled and looked away with guilt. He couldn’t help but feel like he had brought upon this fate onto his best friend, considering he had essentially just forced the Zord onto him. Nick didn’t say anything even after spotting his friend’s guilty look, focusing instead on what ‘Casey’ was saying.

“You two are not the only ones.” Upon seeing the confused looks the two shot at him, he elaborated with, “There are others. Four, exactly.” He pointed his now-freed hands at the other stones resting on the table, reflecting sunlight filtering through the window in shades of red, green and purple. The black one seemed to be exactly like a black hole, eating up the sunlight with no escape. “You have to find them. Before…”

“Before what?” Joseph asked. The older man was silent, staring at the Zords before looking down at the ground. He spoke with a voice that seemed more grave and solemn than before, obviously thinking about something he was keeping from the two younger men.

“Before you _need_ to find them.”

\---

“Haha, really?” 

“Yeah, man,” Shawn replied with a grin, “She actually said that.”

James scoffed, incredulous, though he still had a smile on his face. “I doubt that she called you that. It doesn’t sound like her.”

“And it doesn’t sound like you to actually have a girlfriend before, but life can be surprising, huh?” Shawn teased back, to which he earned an elbow to the side for, letting out a little oof. “What was that for?!”

“Oh, nothing. I just--” He cut himself off mid-sentence, eyes widening by the sight before him. James stared at the woman his heart beats for --just thinking like that, as if he were in some lame romance novel, disgusted him-- talking to some strange guy who was… Cornering her?

Lola stared easily at the man before her, leaning against the wall as the two spoke. From this distance, James couldn’t hear what the two were saying, but he couldn’t help the sense of unease that came over him. He quickly spotted another man standing a bit away, arms crossed as he watched the two speaking. He didn’t seem very happy to be there, but he was doing his best to be inconspicuous.

“Hey, you okay?” Shawn’s eyes settled on what James had been staring at, and a devious grin formed on his face. “Wow, look at that guy. Probably Lola’s type, huh?”

James, rather than responding, stood up and marched over. He reasoned that he wanted to know who these two guys he had never seen at the school were, but deep down he knew the truth. And Shawn would relentlessly tease him and call him an ‘overprotective alpha thinking with something other than your head’, but… Well, James was already standing in front of the two guys.

While walking, Lola had wandered off and the two not from the school were standing near each other, talking in hushed tones. They seemed to be completely different; the one that was noticeably more well-built though shorter had a small smile on his face while the other with warmer skin tones had an irritable look on his face. Although he was taller than both, the both of them seemed to have a larger presence.

“--ey is wrong. There’s no one he--” The taller one quickly spotted James approaching and cut off whatever he was about to say. The other one turned around to see what his companion was looking at. 

Within the short walk, James had quickly lost his fire. “Uh, hey… Are you guys new here? I’ve never seen you before, are you transfers?”

The taller one seemed disgruntled. “Yeah, sure. Who are you?”

“James. Sanders. And you are?”

The new student hesitated before speaking, something James definitely didn’t miss. “Keith Soultanian, at your service.” Keith nodded to his companion next to him. “That’s Mark.” 

Mark sighed, quirking an eyebrow at the other man before inspecting James. “It’s Mark Smith.” 

“Nice to meet you two!”

\---

“Soultanian? Really?”

Nick shrugged. “It was the only name I could come up with under pressure. Plus, what’re you criticizing me for? Mark Smith is obviously a fake name… At least Keith Soultanian is more believable. ”  
Joseph scoffed. “Whatever. We’re not here to criticize each others’ fake names. We’re here to find the ones that can use these two.” Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out two Zords. They fit easily into his palm, turning his skin shades of purple and green from the faint light they were emitting. Every so often, the light pulsed, sometimes becoming stronger or weaker as the two walked.

“Are you sure one of them is here?”

“Two of them, actually.” 

“Hey!” Another voice cried out.

Both Joseph and Nick snapped to attention, looking in the direction of the commotion. There was the guy that had approached the both of them before, except in place of his awkward yet somehow easy smile, there was fear. 

Standing in front of James was… something. Its body was strange looking, human-like though wrong in a way. It seemed disfigured to the point of inducing disgust in the two that were previously chatting with each other. Of course, James was too terrified to think that the thing attacking him was ugly. Its legs were bent back, almost like an animal’s legs, and there was a chittering and gnashing rat’s head in place of where someone’s face should have been though otherwise, it looked human enough.

Joseph glanced at Nick. “You know how to use it, right?” He drew two Zords from his jacket, strongly glowing pink and blue. It was as if they knew what was going to happen.

Nick caught the Zord that the brunette tossed at him, and nodded. “Yeah, hopefully.”

With that, they both thrust an arm forward, holding their respective Zords in their fingers.

“Blue Wolf!”

“Pink Bear!”

In unison, they shouted, “Let’s go! Unbeatable Beast Rangers!”


	8. Chapter 8

Two rangers stood before the snarling rat humanoid.

One was blue, one was pink. The blue one had a white insignia on his chest in the shape of a wolf’s head, not clashing one bit with the blue of his outfit nor the black of his visor or belt. The pink one had quite a similar outfit, though rather than a white wolf, there was a white bear. The insignias, though only silhouettes, seemed so lifelike that it was as if the wolf and bear could leap off their chests, snarling and growling. Of course, that did not happen.

The rat-like creature was almost like a human. Save for the oddly-shaped legs, the body entirely composed of metal and of course, the rat’s head replacing the human head, it could have passed for another person on the street. Then again, the uniform it wore was quite strange too. Somehow, it appeared to be metal, but at the same time, it wasn’t. Sturdy yet flexible. Shining but dull. It was obvious that the material was not from the planet Earth.

Quickly, Joseph inspected the sword in his hand. The handle was a bright blue with accents of white and dark grey. The blade itself, though, was mainly silver save for the blue stripe going down the center, a strange material swirling in it and glowing softly. It seemed just like the Zord that was now resting in the center of his belt, strangely dull. Joseph snapped back to attention when the rat-like creature --Robo Rats, he decided to dub them due to the shining metal that caught the light of the sun-- charged at him, shrieking in an almost unholy manner. It was surprisingly quick, dashing forward and startling Joseph. It had its hands outstretched, claws ready and going in for the kill.

Without even thinking, the blue ranger parried the claws with his blade, a few sparks flying from metal scraping against metal. He grit his teeth as the Robo Rat gnashed its teeth dangerously close to his face, pushing against his sword and trying to knock him over. All of a sudden, it let out a shriek of pain, and as it writhed away, Joseph realized why. There were glowing arrows stuck in its back, a faint pink as blood oozed from the wounds. The blue ranger glanced up to see Nick, his position making it very obvious he had just shot the arrows. His weapon, similarly to Joseph’s, was primarily the color of his suit with accents of white and grey. He had no quiver, though that didn’t seem like the most important detail at the moment.

Looking down at the Robo Rat, it was clear it was dead. It’s leg twitched for a moment before, all of a sudden, it crumbled away into dust that was swept away by the wind before either ranger could react. 

“What the hell?!”

The spell was broken by the bystander’s outcry. Ah, right, they were trying to protect someone from the Robo Rat. James --that was his name, right?-- had a look of pure shock on his face, staring down at where the remains of the Robo Rat had once laid. Joseph sighed before saying, “It’s a long story.”

“I’ve got time,” James muttered, eyes still wide and he was frozen in place.

\---

“We think you’re one of us.”

James blinked, eyebrows furrowing in confusion. “Me. A… what was it you called yourselves?”

Joseph turned his head to share a look with Nick before replying. “Unbeatable Beast Rangers. Or just… rangers.”

“I seriously doubt I could do what you guys just did. And plus, I don’t have… powers like you.” James looked hesitant when saying the word ‘powers’ though he did so anyway. “There’s no way I can become a ranger.”

Fiddling with the blue ring that had appeared after Joseph had transformed back to his previous form --powered down, he liked to think of it as-- and staring at the ground, he sighed. The soft glow of the blue Zord comforted him where it was held in the intricate silver of the ring. “We don’t know for sure. That’s why we need to test something.”

Joseph could hear the sound of clothes rustling as Nick reached into his pocket and laid down the four remaining Zords on the table. “We need you to touch each of them to see what happens. If you react to one, then… you’re one of us.”

James swallowed, staring down at the Zords and for a moment he thought he would reach out, but instead, he shook his head. “I can’t do this. I--I can’t.”

With a heavy sigh, Joseph looked up at James. “Please. If you don’t… well, the thing that just attacked you is going to attack even more people. And just the two of us can’t take down many of them.”

Shooting a frantic look at Joseph, James glanced over at Nick. He wasn’t exactly paying attention, seemingly lost in his own world. He was violently gripping his arm, short nails digging crescent marks into his skin. Joseph rested a hand on the other’s shoulder, startling him and causing his head to spin so quickly in his direction he thought his friend had gotten whiplash. With a deep breath in and out, Nick muttered, “I’m fine.”

Nodding rather than pressing on the matter, he directed his attention back to the man sitting across him who was nervously staring at the stones. One of them seemed particularly bright, and Joseph already had an idea of which Zord was James’s. “I… If I come with you, what happens?”

“You leave behind the life you know, but you become a hero. We may have to travel across the world to avoid these from getting into the wrong hands.”

More staring. After a long moment of silence, James looked back up to look Joseph in the eye. Nick was adamantly refusing to look at what was happening. “I’ll… do it. I’ll do it.” He reached forward, fingers inching towards the glowing Zords.


	9. Chapter 9

“Let me get this straight. We’re supposed to find three other rangers,” James said, dabbing the wet washcloth against this face as he wiped off some sweat. Apparently, he had been sweating bullets when he passed out, something that was a normal occurrence for the two other rangers when they received their Zords. 

“Yes.” Nick looked almost bored, voice monotone. He didn’t seem very interested in James, glancing repeatedly to the side to look at Joseph messing around with something. He was fairly sure he was trying to contact Casey, though judging by his frustrated sighs, it wasn’t really working. Nick’s eyes drifted lower, quickly looking away and fighting away the heat rising in his cheeks. 

“And we have no idea where they are? What if they’re halfway across the world?” James hadn’t noticed Nick’s flushed face, staring at the Zords laid out on the coffee table with distress in his eyes. “How long is it gonna take to find them all? What if it takes years?”

Nick shrugged in response, not up to using full sentences to answer James’s questions. The other man huffed angrily, annoyed by the other’s lack of participation in the conversation. “C’mon, just tell me something!”

The blue ranger glared at him before saying, “Fine. Do you want to know something? We can’t ever go home. Not while we have these Zords. They say with great power, comes great responsibility.” Nick laughed bitterly. “We’re going to spend probably the rest of our lives guarding these things. If we can’t? Then the Earth dies. Simple as that.” 

James had gone silent. Then he decided to speak up. “But… what are we even fighting?”

Surprisingly, Nick didn’t shrug or respond with a one-word answer. “I don’t know. Hopefully, we’ll never _have_ to know. What I do know is that these Zords are old, powerful, and someone wants them at all times. And you know who has to protect them?” He grinned bitterly, no humor or joy on his face. “We do.”

“Stop depressing the kid, Nick,” Joseph said as he reentered the living room. A phone in one hand confirmed Nick’s earlier suspicions of him trying to get into contact with Casey. Whether or not it had worked remained to be seen. 

“Wh-- we’re the same age!” James protested, squawking indignantly. He frowned, still wiping away with sweat with the wet washcloth as Joseph smiled, obviously amused. Suddenly, James gasped loudly, slamming a hand against the table which startled both Nick and Joseph. “Shawn! Where is Sh--” 

“Blond guy? Kinda oily rat-looking? Tall?” James nodded hesitantly, not quite happy with the unflattering descriptions but too desperate to care. “He’s at your school. What was it called…? Moatpew High…?” Nick scratched at the side of his neck as he tried to remember. “I don’t know. He’s at your school is all I’m saying. Probably wondering where you are. Oh, and you probably missed…” He glanced at a clock on the wall. “Five classes?”

James had a hand in his hair, looking like he was about to hyperventilate. “How am I supposed to tell him about all… This?” He gestured at the Zords resting against the table and at Nick and Joseph. “Shit! How do I tell my parents about this! The school! They’re not gonna fucking believe I have to go on some… fantasy mission to protect some fucking magic stones!” Okay, no James was definitely hyperventilating.

“Hey, hey, calm down,” Joseph said, trying to lay a comforting hand on James’s shoulder but being slapped away. He glanced at Nick for advice, who could only respond with a shrug. Joseph shot a hot glare and the other man sighed wearily. “Listen,” he started hesitantly.

“What the hell! I didn’t--I didn’t sign up for this!” James panicked pulling at his short hair and fidgting in his seat. “Listen!” Joseph shouted, just so he could get the hyperventilating man’s attention. When his head snapped to the side to look at him, Nick smiled even if it wasn’t the friendliest. “Look. We all had to come to terms with this. I told my parents and, even if they didn’t understand it at first, eventually they did. 

“But what if--”

“No. There’s no ‘what ifs’ here. Stop being so paranoid about the future and just focusing on what’s happening now. And hell, you’re not alone. You got us and these other three.” Nick pointed to him and Joseph before pointing at the three stones. He knew there would be no way that this strange team could work with just even one player missing. “You know, if you don’t come with us, we can’t operate. It’ll be like missing a leg, it wouldn’t be impossible but we wouldn’t bother with him. 

“Look, Shawn, he…” “What? What do you want?” Now he was just getting annoyed. “I think Shawn might be one of us? An Unbeatable Beast Ranger.”

Both Joseph and Nick froze. Nick, although he had one hand in mid-air that he had been using to make gestures with and his mouth was wide open mid-sentence, he still looked like someone trapped within a photo. Joseph, meanwhile, was sitting across from James in a comfy-looking back, looking at something on his phone though now he was staring at James with a look of pure shock.

“Um… why do you think so?” Joseph asked, barely able to force his voice out past the initial surprise. 

“I don’t know. It’s just… he reminds me of you guys, I guess? Also…” James pointed at the green gemstone sitting peacefully on the table. “That one seems awfully bright, but when I touch it…” He tapped a finger against the smooth-cut stone. “Nothing happens. So it must be Shawn, right?”

Joseph and Nick traded astonished looks. After a moment of heavy silence that hung in the air, thick as a tension that could be cut with a knife, Nick said, “It… could be possible. We’d have to go back to the school to find out though.” He winced. “It might involve kidnapping your friend… And you’d have to help.”


End file.
